City to hear report on panhandling

Wednesday

Oct 24, 2012 at 3:44 AM

Posted By Walter Bird Jr.

It has been a thorn in the side of many city councilors for years, but in recent months the apparent proliferation of panhandlers on city streets drove many of them to demand action be taken. Next week, the public will finally get a look at what City Manager Mike O'Brien and his administration believe should be done to tackle the issue.&nbsp;

While not wanting to divulge details, and saying the study of panhandling remains a work in progress, O'Brien said his report will seek to &quot;deliver facts, dispel myths and provide details of who is on the streets, what services they are receiving and why they are allowed to populate on the street.&quot; He said the report &quot;could&quot; include a proposed ordinance, but did not elaborate, other than to say a &quot;mutli-pronged approach&quot; is being taken to assess the problem.

&quot;It's been an effort of research done by my staff for best practices, with the input of public safety personnel, our law department,&quot; O'Brien said to reporters after Tuesday night's council meeting.

O'Brien said there are about 40 panhandlers throughout the city, a number he says has doubled since his administration started outreach and census efforts. The panhandlers seen on a daily basis are largely &quot;the same individuals&quot; and most are seeking money to support their drug habits, O'Brien said.

The city manager was clearly frustrated over the response he says he has received from social service agencies in the city. He would not name a particular social service agency, but said there are philosophical differences between these agencies and his administration.&nbsp;

&quot;There are hundreds of millions of dollars spent on social services so people are not on the street and seeking money to support what are generally drug habits,&quot; says O'Brien. &quot;[Some agencies] honestly believe even though [their clients] are receiving high-quality serviced they still have the right to solicit out on the streets.&quot;

O'Brien said he believes it is necessary for these agencies to tell their clients they cannot receive services and be out on the street soliciting money as well.

&quot;What upsets me is that most of these people are receiving resources at the state and local level that cost taxpayers a lot of money,&quot; he said. &quot;Even though they're receiving services, they're out on the streets to feed their drug habits.&quot;

One agency that is doing the right thing, according to O'Brien, is Veterans Inc., which is run by president and CEO&nbsp;Vincent Perrone. O'Brien said that organization has &quot;clearly-defined rules&quot; that prohibit clients from receiving services if they engage in panhandling activities.

The issue came up at the tail end of the council meeting when At-Large Councilor Rick Rushton, who has been outspoken against what he sees as a growing panhandling problem, asked for an update.

&quot;We made it clear we are a compassionate city that wants people that need help to have access to help,&quot;&nbsp;Rushton said. &quot;There are ... every possible area of need can be met with present resources in Worcester. That doesn't mean we have to stand for the panhandling that has gotten out of control.&quot;

District 2 Councilor Phil Palmieri seconded his colleague's concerns, saying:&nbsp;&quot;This is an important issue. There are so many things going on and I&nbsp;have the utmost confidence in the city manager that this will, in fact, be resolved. Hopefully, the city solicitor as well will move this to the front burner so we do not have to continue to have these issues and problems.&quot;

The council is scheduled to meet again Tuesday, Oct. 30 at 7 p.m. in City Hall. Also expected on the agenda for that meeting is a presentation of a Housing Market Study, which was supposed to be held this week, but was put off because not every councilor was at the meeting. Councilors Sarai Rivera and Mike Germain were absent.